Changeling
by LadyNightRunner
Summary: There's a new student in Harry's year. A pretty girl named Tammora NightShade who is more than meets the eye. The lives of Harry's almostgirlfriend and Draco's cat are about to collide!
1. Enter Tammora NightShade

The Hogwarts Express was just pulling away from the platform when a lone figure shot through the barrier and leaped onto the train, hauling a trunk behind her. Now safe, she began a search for a compartment to sit in. Each and every one was full. In the very last compartment, there were only three people. Praying for acceptance, she tentatively opened the door. "Um. Hello. May I sit in here? There's nowhere else."

"Sure. Do you need help with your trunk?" a tall, slim, muscular boy with shaggy black hair responded, getting up and stepping forward to help.

"Yeah, thanks." She said, happy to meet such a kind male.

"I'm Harry Potter, this is Hermione Granger-" he gestured at a pretty brunette with her nose buried in a book. "-and Ron Weasly." He pointed at a gangly redhead with freckles. The girl smiled and executed an elegant bow.

"I'm Tammora NightShade." she said, and sat down next to Harry.

"I've never seen you before." Hermione said, "Are you a first year?"

"No, not really. I've studied to sixth-year level, and I got called here as a student, seeing as I don't have parents anymore."

"What happened to your parents Tammora?" Ron asked.

"Burglars broke into the house while my parents were asleep and I was camping in the woods. They killed my parents in their sleep. And call me Tam or Tammy. Tammora sounds like I'm in trouble." The compartment fell silent.

"Sorry. I shouldn't have asked." Ron said, shamefaced.

"Really, it's alright. It's not as if I really liked them. The only favor they ever did me was to bring me into this world." Tammy said, seriously.

"Do you really feel that way about them Tammy?" Hermione asked, putting her book down and looking at the other girl with interest.

"Yup. I wasn't very well treated, and I never had any friends. I didn't even know anyone outside of my parents little circle. They don't want anything to do with me, so here I am. Mom and Pops left me enough to keep myself going until I can get a job. I'm better off without 'em." The entire group thought this over for a moment.

"So, Tam. Do you play Quidditch?" Harry said. This broke the uncomfortable silence, and the four began an animated conversation.

/Several hours later/ "Hey, Tammy. You should get your robes on. We've got about an hour and a half until we get to the school, but the bathrooms will be crowded later." Hermione commented. She, Ron, and Harry had been wearing their robes when Tammora arrived.

"Oh. Sure. Harry, will you help me get my trunk back down?" Harry complied, and the two began to get the trunk down. Just as the trunk was free of the luggage rack, the train went around a sharp bend. Harry lost his balance and fell into Tammy, who toppled. Both teenagers collapsed on the floor in a tangle of limbs. Ron managed to catch the trunk before it hit either of the two on the head. Harry and Tam were laughing so hard that they had trouble getting up, and leaned on each other for support. "Sorry." Tammy said when she stopped laughing.

"I've got to admit, neither of you is going to take the prize for being graceful, that's for sure." Hermione commented. "Uh…Tam? What are you doing?" The other girl had pulled out her wand. Harry and Ron both backed away.

"Changing." Tammy noted the skeptical looks she was getting from both. "Watch. _Enclosusblancu." _As soon as she uttered the incantation, an opaque wall formed around Tammy, hiding her from view.

"You can do an enclosure charm?" Hermione squeaked, wide-eyed.

"Yeah. It used to be one of the only ways I could get a little privacy." Tammy's voice came clearly from the inside of the wall.

"That's a charm a lot of adult wizards can't do!"

"Mmhm." Tammy brushed off the comment and started changing into her robes. Suddenly, the compartment door opened, and who should be standing there, but our favorite Slytherin, Draco Malfoy.

"If it isn't the amazing bouncing ferret. What do you want Malfoy?" the blonde turned slightly red at the name.

"What are you hiding Potter?"

" Hiding? Nothing?"

"If you weren't hiding something, why would I ask? What's behind that?" The arrogant male pointed at Tammy's enclosure.

"Ummm…n-n-nothing."

"I don't believe you." Malfoy drew his wand and pointed it at the wall.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Hermione warned. (As if Malfoy would listen.)

"_Deletrirus!" _There was a sharp crack, and the wall disappeared. When the occupants of the compartment dared to look again, they saw a very interesting picture. Tammy stood there, wearing her jeans and black bra, hands on hips, looking extremely angry.

"Which one of you just broke my charm?" she asked, her voice deadly clam. Everyone pointed at Malfoy.

"I d-d-d-d-didn't know! I swear!" he cried. Tammy drew her wand and approached. Harry, Hermione, and Ron moved away quickly.

"Run." She hissed.

"Yaaaaaah!" Draco screamed, turned tail, and ran. Tammy gave him a moment's head start, and then took off after him. Several cars down, a number of other students peered out of their compartments to find the source of the noise, and were treated to an extremely odd sight. Draco Malfoy, running for dear life, with a half naked girl right behind him, wand out, and looking out to kill. Let's pause for a moment and note how striking the scene is. Draco, with his pale skin and blonde hair; Tammy, with her mid-back length black hair and tanned skin. Literally like light running from darkness. Odd, considering the fact that Malfoy is an evil, conceited, self-centered git, where Tam is apparently a kind, polite, nice person (unless provoked. RUN MALFOY!) Draco ran the full length of the train (probably the best workout he's ever had), and sidestepped into his compartment. Crabbe and Goyle were nowhere to be found, and he was trapped. He backed up to the wall, sobbing in fright. "P-p-p-please don't hurt m-m-m-m-me. I really d-d-d-d-didn't know y-you w-were b-b-b-back there." Tammy pointed her wand directly at his chest. He stiffened.

"My wand is to good for you." She growled. Draco, believing this to be a way of saying he was safe, lowered his guard. Before he could react, Tammy's fist connected solidly with his belly, her knee had made contact with his chest, she slapped him hard across the face twice, and he was on the ground. Gasping, Malfoy tried to hide under the seat. "Cowards like you make me sick. If you ever bother me or my friends again, what I'll do to you will make that feel like a love-tap." With that, Tam spun on her heel and stormed out, leaving Draco crying softly on the floor.

"So what happened?" Harry asked when Tammy came in.

"I chased him down to his compartment, cornered him, and left."

"Anything else?" Hermione asked.

"N-" Tammy started to say. She was interrupted by the door banging open and a crowd of second and third years peered in.

" That's her!" one of them cried, pointing. "She punched out Malfoy!"

"OUR HERO!" the students cheered. Hermione and Ron chased them out while Harry just stood and stared at the girl in front of him.

"You punched out Draco Malfoy?" Harry said in disbelief.

"Yeah. Why?"

"You have just won yourself the title of hero and, according to the kids we just chased out, 'the Protector of the Small' as well." Ron said.

"I don't understand."

"Look at it this way. Malfoy is cruel, rude, and a bully. He's awful to anyone, his age or younger, that gets in his way. The only house he doesn't beat up on is Slytherin, for obvious reasons. To have incapacitated Draco Malfoy using your bare hands, no magic what so ever, well, naturally you've become a hero on the eyes of the bullied." Hermione explained. Tammy groaned.

"Wonderful, just great." She performed the enclosure charm again and finished changing. When the wall came down again, she was trying to comb her hair. Due to its length, she was having quite a difficult time.

"Need help?" Harry offered when Tammy sat down beside him.

"Knock yourself out." She grumbled, handing him the brush.

"Turn sideways." He instructed. She obeyed, and he began carefully detangling her hair, humming softly. Hermione and Ron gaped. The atmosphere in the compartment grew decidedly cozy, with the rain outside pattering gently on the window, the occasional flash of lightning followed by a soft rumble of thunder, and Harry's gentle humming. After a short time, another sound could be heard. It was a steady, deep rumble, like a cats purr, but louder.

"What's that?" Ron asked. "It sounds like a cat purring."

"It's Tammy." Harry said, and gestured at the girl before him. Tammora's eyes were closed, and, sure enough, the purring noise was coming from her.

"Ummm…Tammy?" Hermione said, leaning forward to nudge the girl.

"Yeah?" she opened her eyes, and the purring stopped.

"Was that you making that purring sound?"

"Yup."

"How?"

"Long story." She said shortly.

"We've got more than an hour before we get to the school." Harry pointed out. Tammy turned and looked hard at them.

"Do you really want to know?"

"Yes!" they chorused. Tam sighed.

"Okay, fine. Do you guys know what changelings are?"

"Yeah. They're magical beings that can take to form of an animal, plant or even object. They can take many forms." Hermione answered.

"At least you know. I'm half changeling. Look." The three students watched in shock as her form shifted. First, her body shrank slightly, becoming more compact, and tense, like a tightly coiled spring. Her ears disappeared, and then reappeared on top of her head, in the form of a pair of large cat ears. A long tail appeared behind, and her nails lengthened to become claws. When she turned to face the group fully, they could see that her eyes were slit-pupiled. Tammy smiled shyly, revealing sharp canines. "What d'you think?"

"Wow." Ron whispered softly. The other two nodded in agreement. Tammy grinned, and changed back.

"Now, where were we?"

* * *

Yes? No? Review People! 


	2. Catbalm, and the effects thereof

/Later, in the Gryffindor common-room/ "This is interesting."

"What's interesting?" Harry asked, looking up from his game of chess with Ron

"We've got tomorrow off, which gets us into the weekend. To put it simply, we've got the next three days free before we begin classes." Hermione said, staring at her schedule in puzzlement.

"Awesome!" Ron said. "Checkmate."

"Is there a specific time we need to be up?" Tammy asked from where she was petting Crookshanks on a couch.

"Nope. Well, not really. You'll be fine if you're up by 6:00 when we've got class. When we don't have class, sleep as long as you want." Ron said.

" Thanks Ron. I'm going to bed." Tammy stood up and headed off to the girls' dormitories.

"I think I'll do the same. G'night guys." Hermione followed the other upstairs. After another game of chess, which Harry lost, the boys went to bed as well.

/Saturday/ There was a party going on in the common room; a _very _noisy party. Normally, this wasn't a problem. With Tammy around, it was. Within the first half-hour, she'd nearly gone insane from the noise. Hermione was busy elsewhere, so Ron and Harry took it in turns to watch the girl, who had found sanctuary in the boys' dormitory. After about four hours, both boys stayed in the dorm, watching as Tammy, affectionately called Kit by Hermione and the two of them, explored their turf, then played quietly with a ball of string she had, and even managed to get the boys to play Cat's Cradle with her for a while. After making sure that Kit was quite tangled up in the string, Ron and Harry chatted quietly with one another, sitting on Ron's bed.

"It's so funny how she can act so much like a cat and no one really notices." Ron commented.

"Yeah. Still, people around here see what they want to see. If they think of Tammy as a normal human girl, then that's what she is to them. After all, you and Hermione saw me as a friend and a fellow wizard, rather than a hero."

"Am I interrupting something?" Neville peered in the doorway.

"No, you can come in." Harry responded. Neville did, opening his trunk and removing a shallow plant dish. It had what seemed like grass in it, and some small yellow flowers. He placed it carefully on the stand next to his bed. Tammy, who had managed to detangle herself, walked over and sniffed delicately at the flowers.

"These are lovely Neville." she said, smiling. Neville blushed at the praise, and plucked a delicate bloom, handing it to the girl with a graceful flourish that left Harry and Ron in shock. "Catbalm, right?"

"Yeah. You know what it is?"

"Uh-huh. There was a lot of it in the woods near my house."

"I'll leave you guys alone now." Neville said, and backed out of the room, having watered his plant.

/15 minutes later/ "Hey, Harry."

"What is it Ron?"

"Is Kit acting a bit…I dunno…a bit _odd_?"

"Now that you mention it, yeah, she is. Like she's really hyper or something. I wonder wha- Agh!" Tammy leaped up, grabbed Harry's hands, and bounced away, leading him in a wild dance around the room. Ten minutes later, she was asleep in a ball on the floor.

"What caused that?" Ron asked, looking at Harry, who was sitting on his bed, looking shocked and exhausted.

"I don't know, but I have an idea." He got up and went back downstairs. It took him a few minutes, but he found Neville. "Oy! Neville! I need to talk to you!" Neville nodded, and the two retreated to the stairwell so they wouldn't need to yell to hear each other.

"What is it Harry?"

"What are the properties of catbalm?"

"Well, it's used both in knock-out potions and ones to give extra energy, and it's got an interesting effect on cats."

"What about cats?"

"After they smell it, they act really energetic and playful for between 15 to 30 minutes, then they fall asleep. Depending on how long the exposure is, they might sleep for a few hours, a few minutes, or for a full day. It takes almost a full day of exposure to make them sleep _that_ long though."

"Thanks. Neville, would you mind moving your plant for the night?" Harry pulled out his wand behind his back and cast a quick charm that made his eyes water. "It's bothering my allergies." Sure, it was a full-out lie, but it worked.

"Oh, sure!" Neville hurried to obey. When Harry got back upstairs, Tammy was running around, obviously under the influence of the catbalm again. Harry explained the situation to Ron, then climbed into bed (he was already wearing his pajamas) and watched to make sure that Kit didn't get herself into trouble. He was actually starting to fall asleep when his mattress shifted under the application of extra weight.

"Huh?" Harry blinked, and realized that Tammy was making herself comfortable on his bed. Right next to him, as it happened.

"Kit, what are you _doing_?"

"Going to sleep. What does it _look_ like?"

"In my _bed_! With _me_!" Harry hissed, appalled.

"Where else? With _Ron_? I'm tired, and that party isn't showing any sign of slowing." Tam growled, baring her teeth, which were still sharper than normal, even if she looked fully human right now.

"Okay, fine. Let's just try to not make this a habit, okay?"

"Okay. G'night Harry." Tammy pulled the blankets over herself and shut her eyes. Swearing under his breath, Harry rolled over so that his back was to hers, and fell asleep, dreading what would happen if someone took the current situation the wrong way.

/Morning/ "Harry? Um…you might want to wake up now. Like RIGHT NOW!" Harry rolled over and ignored Ron. Biiiiiig mistake.

"Jeez Harry! Just waitin' for a chance to get at the new girl?"

"_What _are you _talking _about?" he growled, notbothering to look up.

"I mean you and Tammy sharing a bed. From what I can see, you certainly enjoyed yourselves." Seamus said, prodding impatiently at Harry's shoulder. After several minutes of futile attempts at ignoring this, Harry opened his eyes, to come face to face with a sleepy-looking Tammy. They were nose-to-nose, literally, all curled up together.

"Eeeep!"

"Aaaagh!" The pair jumped backwards, away from each other. Both overshot and fell off opposite sides of the bed. Harry, with a mumble of 'don' wanna ge' up', climbed back into bed. Tammy sprang up, stomped over to Seamus, hissed at him, and stalked out of the room.

"Sheesh. What's her problem? Harry? Harry? Oh, never mind." It was no good trying to talk to the boy; he was asleep again.


	3. Fight Under the Imperious Curse

A month went by, during which Tammy submitted to the meeting and greeting of the entire house, saved a couple of first years from Malfoy (she only had to look at the blonde and he was gone), and seemed to be relatively happy. This conclusion was shattered one Saturday morning, early, after she, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had fallen asleep in the common room (they'd been involved in a heated discussion on whether or not Hippogriffs were classified as an intelligent species or not.) Tammy, having shaken her companions awake, stretched irritably.

"I've got to get outside." She mumbled, hauling a groggy Harry to his feet.

"Out?"

"Yes, out. I can't stay cooped up inside a moment longer. Is there any way I can get outside without breaking any rules? Just on the grounds."

"Yeah. I'll try and talk the doors into letting us out. You'll stay within sight from the castle?"

"Mmhm. You go negotiate with the doors, and I have to change. If it'll help, tell them that I'll give them a good polishing tonight if they cooperate."

"Got it. Be quick in getting downstairs."

/Ten minutes later/ "Okay. Will they let me out?"

"Yeah. Come on." Harry wasn't exactly sure why Tammy wanted out, but he followed her out, with Hermione and Ron, who had followed Tammy out, in tow. Tammy moved out into the center of the wide grassy lawn, and took off her jacket. Harry was impressed. Really, due to the drape of the school robes and Tammy's love of extremely baggy pajama's, Harry didn't actually know how Tammy was built. Tall and slender, yes, but not whether it was an athletic type of slender, or a starved, anorexic stick figure kind of skinny. Definitely the first one. Tammy pulled her wand out of the jacket, put a mark of silver sparks where she was standing, then neatly traced a large square out on the grass, with her first mark as a center. This done, she handed Harry her jacket (wand is back in the pocket) plunked a water bottle down on the grass by Harry's feet, and headed back for her center mark. The outfit she wore was interesting; a long-sleeved and legged leotard of midnight-black, high necked, with a swirl of green, purple, and blue streaks over all. She was barefoot.

"Hey, Ron. What's she doing?" Seamus had followed them out.

"I dunno, but I think you should stay quiet." Seamus obeyed.

Tammy turned so that she was facing east, and the rising sun. She raised her hands over her head, arms crossed at the wrists. The watchers could hear her whispering something under her breath. More students of differing houses and years drifted out to see what was going on. A respectful silence fell over them.

"One…two…_GO_!" By the time her audience was able to understand what was going on, Tammy was off in a whirl of color. She spun, flipped, bent, swayed, and leaped, all while remaining firmly within the bounds of her square. Later, after she was finished, some of the watchers would say that that thought they could hear a soft humming from the square, an enchanting melody that Tammy kept step with. Then, she slowed. In the west corner, right in front of the other students, she bent over backward, hands on the grass, then pulled her feet up into the air, and over, into a split. Another change in speed. She snapped up again, and leaped into the air, coming to a perfect landing in the spot in the center of the square. Her audience went wild, clapping and cheering. It was only then that Tammy realized how many people had been watching her. Blushing furiously, she hurried over to Harry and scooped up her water bottle. All in all, she was rather enjoying the attention when…

"Nightshade!"

"Oh look. It's the ferret and his band of ragtag rodents. What do you want Malfoy?" Seamus drawled.

"This is between me and that _thing_." Malfoy growled, pointing at Tammy. She bristled at this, along with most of the males in the crowd. She shook her head at them, and they quieted.

"Well, I'm listening." She hissed.

"I'm tired of you saying what I can or can't do. We settle this, here and now. I'm challenging you, Tammora Nightshade, to a fight."

"Fight? As in, hand-to-hand, no-holds-barred, no magic fight?"

"Yes."

"Well then, are we going this the proper way, or, as I would expect of you, more along the lines of a street brawl?"

"As the challenged, you get to choose."

"Well, to show what I think of you, and so I can have some fun, I'll take the brawling. Anything goes."

"Anything goes." Malfoy agreed.

"You lose if you're knocked out, go out of these bounds, give up, or are down for a count of ten. Harry, choose a member of each house for the refereeing. I play fair, even if my opponent is a slimy weasel." Tammy said, indicating her square, still glimmering on the grass.

"Ferret." Ron corrected.

/Meanwhile, up at the castle-Prof. McGonagall's office/ "We should go down and stop this." Professor McGonagall said, watching the fight preparations out of the corner of her eye.

"Perhaps, but I believe, since Mr. Malfoy challenged Ms. Nightshade, and seeing as this is going to be a relatively fair fight, we should let it pass." Dumbledore said, smiling a little.

"A _relatively_ fair fight? What do you mean?"

"It seems that Ms. Nightshade has much more experience at these things. Mr. Malfoy learned that on the train, as he apparently walked in on her and deliberately took down the walls of her enclosure charm while she was in the process of dressing. She became rather irritated and chased him the full length of the train. I do believe that he's in for another loss now." He responded. Outside, Tammora and Draco were standing at opposite corners of the square. Malfoy hadn't been wearing his robes when he's come outside, and had discarded his T-shirt, apparently for more maneuverability.

/Back outside/ "Okay. Ready? GO!" Tammy casually wandered in the direction of the center dot, while Malfoy charged at her. When he was reasonably close, she stopped, and thrust her knee between his, successfully throwing him off balance, then helped him fall by flipping the blonde over her hip. Rather unwisely, Malfoy grabbed her ankle as he went down, and yanked. Tammy fell neatly, slamming an elbow into his belly as she did so. Malfoy got up, wheezing, and moved for his opponent again. Tammy, seemingly calm, allowed him several attempts at punching her before she caught both of his fists and twisted until his back was to her, and his hands overhead.

"Give up yet? You're way out of your league Malfoy." Tammy hissed in his ear, digging her knee into the small of his back.

"Not really." He answered, and bent low, snapping his arms overhead. Tammy, who had suddenly found her hands trapped by his, went right along with them, and farther, landing with a thud on her back a few feet away.

"Whoa! Where'd they learn to fight like that?"

"Who knows!"

"How long d'you think they'll be able to keep at it?"

"At the rate they're goin', not much longer."

/The Office again/ "Headmaster, are you sure letting them do this is a good idea?"

"Of course not. That's why I'm allowing it." Professor McGonagall sighed. Sometimes making sense of what Dumbledore said was impossible.

"But they're going to hurt each other!"

"Perhaps. But that is the nature of a fight, is it not?"

/Back outside/ By now it was quite clear that Tammy and Malfoy were just about evenly matched. Both were battered and bruised, dusty, and starting to tire. Currently, they were both keeping a death-grip on one wrist of the other, and were practically nose-to-nose.

"Give up yet?" Malfoy growled, trying to force Tammy down.

"Never." She snapped. Right about then, she got a good look at his eyes. They were blank, an empty void, completely devoid of soul. There was no sign of life, and that meant he had no free will. _Oh man. He's being controlled! Someone's got him under the Imperious Curse!_ Then, just for a second, she saw a flicker of light in those eyes, and the hold on her wrist loosened. In that split second, she also saw the controller. Marcus Flint, who had left school the year before (so said Harry) but had come back this year to collect some things he'd apparently left behind. Tammy could see his hand clenched around something beneath his robe, more or less at pocket level. His gaze was fixed on her and Malfoy, and his mouth was moving slightly in silent speech.

"How 'bout now?" Malfoy growled, giving her wrist a sharp yank. Tammy lost her footing and stumbled. Malfoy also lost his balance, and his foot came down on her ankle as he struggled to regain a solid stance before she did. Tammy screamed as she heard the bones break. Luckily, because of the rush she was getting from the fight, she couldn't feel it. Yet. Also, this distraction was just what she needed. Dodging a punch from her opponent, Tammy charged Marcus.

"Huh? What? Hey! Get away from- Oof!" Tammy swung, putting everything she had into a single punch. Her fist collided solidly with Marcus's jaw. He went down, and stayed down. Limping, Tammy darted back to Malfoy. He blinked several times, then groaned and passed out. Tammy caught him, and yelped when she accidentally put extra weight on her ankle. A wave of pain washed over her, and she fell, with the unconscious blonde on top of her.

"Tammy? What's going on? Why did you attack Flint? What happened to Malfoy?"

"Flint had…had Malfoy under the Imperious Curse…controlling him…there's no way Malfoy could've learned to fight that well that fast…took out Flint so his concentration would break and the spell would break with it…. Flint passed out before…before the spell wore off…Malfoy fainted…"

"What happened to you?"

"Got sloppy…lost my balance and tripped…he stepped on my ankle…broke it." Tammy managed through gritted teeth.

"Hey! She broke the rules, attacking Flint!" A Slytherin yelled, coming over with a small band of other Slytherins.

"That wasn't in the rules!" Ron snapped back. The lead boy licked out at Tammy, catching the side of her head.

"Ooooh…lookit the purty stars…" Tammy mumbled, and fainted.


	4. Breaking Point

Sorry this took so long. Everything's been so crazy, now that school's started. Not to mention a big deal about me turning 15, and breaking up with my boyfriend (heartless bastard). I've just been rushing to get everything organized, and I was kinda in a bit of a dark mood, hence the way Paradise Lost has been going. Never fear, my inspiration has returned! More on the way. In the meantime, enjoy!

* * *

"Hey! I think she's waking up!"

"Ron, would you be _quiet_? If Madame Pomfrey hears you, we're going to be out of here faster than you can say wand."

"Oops. Sorry Harry." Tammy blinked.

"Harry? Where? Malfoy?"

"The Hospital Wing. We brought you up after you fainted. Malfoy's two beds down. Marcus Flint is in the bed next to you."

"How did you know Malfoy was being controlled?"

"Ron! Leave her alone! She just woke up!"

"Aw…c'mon Hermione!"

"It's all right 'mione. I don't mind telling. Anything to get my mind off this headache. I knew because I got a good look into his eyes when we were holding each other's wrists. There wasn't anything in there, and Flint was keeping both eyes on Malfoy. Besides, there's no way Malfoy could've learned to fight like that in the short amount of time he's had. It takes months, years even, to learn. I've been working at it since I could walk."

"How could you tell by looking into his eyes?"

"Because that's the look someone gets when they've been put under the Imperious Curse so many times that they're close to Breaking Point."

"Breaking Point? You said that like it's a thing associated with the curse." Harry said. Hermione was very quiet, and Ron looked rather pale.

"Ron, Hermione, would you two mind leaving? I need to explain this to Harry alone." The pair left, and Harry turned to Tammy expectantly. "Sit down Harry." The girl said heavily, gesturing at a chair beside her bed. Harry sat. "Harry, you understand the concept of Horcrux, right?"

"Yeah. What do those foul things have to do with this?"

"And you understand what a Dementor does, right?"

"Of _course_ I do! Would you get on with it?"

"Harry, if I don't ask these questions first, I have no way of knowing how you may take what I have to tell you. So, you agree with the fact that the soul is a tangible thing?"

"Definitely."

"Okay then. Breaking Point is the point at which it won't take much more than a tiny nudge in either direction. One nudge the wrong way, and that soul just shatters. If the soul shatters, the person it belongs to falls into something worse than depression. It takes a _very_ long time, and a lot of luck to heal a shattered soul, unless it's pieced back together with an illegal spell that hasn't been used in decades, centuries even. People who have passed their Breaking Point can be dangerous, or just stop caring to live. _Nothing_ brings them joy, and _everything_ they see is shrouded in darkness and despair. It's a very terrible thing to push someone to their Breaking Point, and the Imperious Curse is one of the most common ways of it happening. Malfoy's been under the Imperious Curse a lot, and for long periods of time."

"Wait a sec! You're saying that _Malfoy_ has been under the Imperious Curse? His father is a prominent Death Eater!"

"Be that as it may, the facts still stand that he's been controlled recently. And you ought to know that not _all_ children born to Death Eater parents become Death Eaters themselves. _I _certainly didn't. Get out." Harry sat very still for a moment, eyes wide as the statement sank in. "I said, get OUT!" Quickly, Harry got to his feet and ran out of the room.

"Your parents were Death Eaters?" Tammy jumped. She turned around, frantically trying to see who had spoken.

"Where are you?"

"Over here Nightshade." Tammy looked to her right, and saw a slim, pale figure sitting up in the second bed down from hers.

"_Malfoy_? How much did you hear?"

"Just that bit about your parents. So they really were, were they?"

"It's none of your business."

"You're angry that I nearly won this morning, aren't you?"

"Of course I am you moron. I've been training since before I can remember, and you almost beat me because some idiot was controlling you! I follow an honor code Malfoy, and I nearly broke it. Actually, I _did_, thanks to you and your buddy over there." Tammy was being as quiet as she could, but the malice in her voice was apparent.

"What are you _talking_ about?"

"I beat up on someone who couldn't properly defend himself, for one. _And_ I was fighting someone who had no free will, and I did it because of my _pride_! I could've _killed_ you!"

" Maybe you should have."

"What, and have your entire house come after me? Nice try. And just so you know, just because I'm in bed doesn't mean that I can't cause you serious pain from here. Ever hear of the _Sectumsempra_ curse?"

"I've experienced it before. I guess _that_ answers my question."

"What do you mean?"

"It's highly unlikely that anyone who wasn't either raised or taught by a Death Eater would know that curse."

"Doesn't that mean that you can use it too?"

"No. I was told that it was too advanced for me."

"It probably is."

"No it's not!"

"Yeah right. A Death Eater's son who can't even resist the Imperious Curse, and you say that the _Sectumsempra _curse isn't too advanced!" Tammy snapped. Malfoy turned several colors, from his usual pale, to bright red, right through to an unnatural white.

"You'd never understand!" He yelled. Tammy smiled to herself. It seemed she had hit a nerve.

"Uh-_huh._ Whatever you say…coward." Malfoy opened his mouth to reply, but Tammora was already asleep.

/Morning/ Tammora was more than a little relived to find that she was allowed to leave the Hospital Wing. She made a beeline for the Great Hall, and breakfast. There, she found Harry, sitting alone and staring at a piece of toast.

"Hey." She said softly, sliding onto the bench beside him.

"Hmm? Oh, hi."

"Listen. I'm really sorry that I yelled at you last night. I just really hate it when people assume that the children are just as corrupt and evil as their parents."

"I'm sorry too. It's just that Malfoy _does_ live up to the standards his father set down. He's the only experience _I_ have with Death Eaters kids."

"I've got news for you, Wonder Boy. Malfoy doesn't even come close to meeting his father's expectations."

"How do you know?"

"I talked- argued actually, with him, last night after you left. He's not allowed to even try out the _Sectumsempra _curse because they think it's too advanced for him. I think he's trying as hard as he can just to earn their trust. I used it against him, and he got pretty upset. There is definitely more to that blonde than meets the eye." Harry sighed.

"I'll take your word for it."

"Why so down?"

"Well, the whole Marcus Flint thing really. Classes are cancelled today because of it. You broke his jaw, by the way."

"That should make you happy, not gloomy like this. Come on, spill. What's wrong?"

"Hermione and Ron went down to Hogsmeade together with a lot of others. They didn't really want me to come."

"And why's that?"

"They were holding hands. Do the math."

"Ouch."

"Tell me about it. The first two friends I ever had are going out, and completely ignoring me!" Several people turned to look at Harry, who was rapidly losing what little hold he had on sanity this morning.

"Harry, why don't you just take a deep breath and calm down. They're just caught up in each other right now. Give 'em a while."

"I agree Mr. Potter. Ms. Nightshade, I need to see you in my office." Harry and Tammora jumped. Professor McGonagall was standing right behind them!

"Y-yes m'am." Tammy stammered. She got up and followed the Professor out, but not before she had whispered, "Eat something Harry." in Harry's ear.

/In P. McGonagall's office/ "Tammora, do you know anything about this?" She handed a heavy scroll of parchment to Tammy.

"What's- oh my." She unrolled it, and found several feet of names. "A petition? What for?"

"A good number of the students here witnessed your fight with Mr. Malfoy, and the performance preceding it. They want to start a club, if you will, with you as the instructor. Two clubs actually, one for the fighting, and one for the gymnastics."

"They want…oh boy."

"Well, what do you think? It sounds good to me."

"Just the gymnastics, for now. They'll have to be limber before I can teach hand-to-hand."

"Then it's settled. You can go."

"Thank you." Tammora said, and ran off to find Harry. She explained the situation to Harry, and they spent several hours planning it. This is what they came up with:

_To anyone wishing to participate in gymnastics classes taught by Tammora Nightshade:_

_There will be a meeting on the grounds near the Whomping Willow tonight after dinner. A limited number of students can be taught, so please come early. Clothing other than robes are required._

_Ladies, do NOT wear skirts. It is awkward and dangerous._

These notices were placed all around the school, and by

mid-afternoon, the school was buzzing with excitement. The meeting was definitely going to have a big turnout.


	5. She's not my girlfriend!

Sorry it took me so long to get this done, but I've had some serious writer's block! I hope you enjoy this, and to all of youout there who want a little more Harry/Tammy fluffyness, well...it's on the way. Featured in the next chapter...bathtime!

* * *

/7:30pm, near the Whomping Willow/ Quite a crowd had gathered, some of them bringing their dinner out in order to be there early. Tammy stood quietly in the center of a circle of light cast by the magical lights she had conjured earlier. A few stragglers raced up. Tammy treated them to a disapproving glare and indicated that they sit on the grass with the others. Looking very embarrassed, they did so.

"Alright. For the few of you who don't know me, I am Tammora Nightshade, and I've received a number of requests to teach you gymnastics. I've agreed to do so. I was also asked to teach some of the self-defense techniques I used two days ago. However, I can't do _that_ until I'm satisfied that you're flexible enough." Tammy said. Like Professors McGonagall and Snape, she was able to speak quietly and still have everyone hear her. They were dead silent.

"How will you know that?" A voice in the back asked.

"I will know because you should be able to keep up with me. I'm going to tell you now, and I'll be telling you this again: If you don't like hard work, go back inside. I'm not going to teach anyone who isn't willing to work for this. Have I made myself perfectly clear?"

"Yes." They chorused.

"I can't hear you!" Tammy yelled.

"YES!" the gathered students yelled back.

"Good. Now, lets see all of you run a lap around the lake. GO!" The students rushed off in a huge herd. Laughing, Tammy seated herself behind Harry on his Firebolt and hung on as he took off, bringing them to a halt over the lake at a point about halfway around.

"So, what do you think of the turnout?" Harry asked, twisting around to look at his passenger.

"Mmmm…there's more than I thought there would be, but some of them have some real potential. A few of them, though…they just want to do it because everyone else wants to. This is going to be quite interesting." She took mental notes on the students below as Harry hovered. When the entire group had returned to the meeting place, Tammy hopped off the Firebolt and surveyed her audience. Most were out of breath, some looked like they were about to pass out, and a select few were barely winded.

"Not bad all of you, not bad at all. But by the time I'm done with you, that will seem _easy_. Now, I've got some sign-up sheets here. Each one has a different class time. _Only sign one._ I'll weed you out as we go along. Do _not_ miss classes unless you have a good reason. If you hurt yourself goofing off, it's not my fault, but injuries that occur when I'm spotting, then I'll take full responsibility, with exceptions."

"What exceptions?" Someone wanted to know.

"Well…if you are deliberately ignoring my instructions and you go and break your wrist because of it, then I certainly am _not_ responsible." The sign-ups were passed around, and eventually made their way back to Tammy. She gave each one a quick look-over and nodded her satisfaction.

"Alright then. First class is tomorrow evening at 7:00. I'll see you then. You can go." The students left in small groups. Tammy stacked up the schedules and headed for Professor McGonagall's office. She'd asked to see the lists and to be made a copy of them, so the other Heads of Houses would know where their students were.

/Later, in the Gryffindor common room/ Tammy dragged herself into the common room and dropped onto the nearest couch.

"Something wrong?" Harry asked, looking up from _Flying with the Cannons._

"I just got chased by those two Neanderthals who follow Malfoy around. Apparently, they are both under the impression that _I_ was the one who used the _Imperious _curse on their irritating blonde boss. I've never been so lost in my life!" She let her neck go limp, head lolling over one arm of the couch.

"That's Crabbe and Goyle for you. Dense to the end."

"Very true." Tammy sat up slowly, wincing.

"You okay?" Harry asked.

"Probably not. Between sudden stops, split-second turns, falling several times on the way back here, and rolling down the last dozen steps into the Entrance Hall…well…you get the idea." Harry shook his head.

"You can't keep a low profile, can you?"

"Neither can you, Wonder Boy."

"Touché." Harry watched his friend for a few minutes, just enjoying her presence. Ron and Hermione were off somewhere, so he was especially grateful that Tammy was around. Otherwise, he'd probably go nuts.

After staring rather blankly at the dancing flames in the fireplace for a few minute, Tammy had the distinct impression that she was being watched. She looked up, and found herself staring into a pair of very green eyes. Likewise, Harry was lost in the mysterious blue-green depths of _her_ eyes. They remained this way for a few seconds, and then both realized that they were staring, and broke away, blushing.

"Yes?" Tammy asked, as calmly as she could. " Is there something on my face?"

"Well, now that you mention it…yeah there is." Harry said. Tammy was silent for a moment, clearly trying to come up with a response to the question she didn't expect to be answered.

"Where?"

"Right on your left cheekbone." Tammy rubbed vigorously at the spot. "No, my left." She tried again. Still no luck.

"If it's really there, you get it off!" She snapped finally. Grinning sheepishly, Harry bent over the couch and rubbed carefully at a purplish spot on her right cheekbone. Tammy yelped and pulled away.

"What did I do?"

"That hurt!"

"I didn't do anything!"

"Well you must have, because it hurt when you touched me." Harry looked puzzled for a moment, and then realized what had probably happened.

"Wait a sec. Hold still, and let me see it again." Grudgingly, Tammy allowed Harry to lean back over the couch and examine her cheek carefully. After a few minutes, he nodded and pulled back.

"What?"

"Hmm?"

"Why did you nod like that? What is it?"

"A bruise. You probably banged it while you were running from Crabbe and Goyle."

"Ah. That explains it. Well, sorry to leave you all by yourself, but I'm going to bed." Tammy stood up and walked, rather stiffly, up the stairs to the girl's dormitory. "Good night."

"G'night."

Several unfortunate Gryffindors were treated to Tammy's spectacular bad mood the next morning. Despite the fact that she had first turned on two of her dorm-mates, nobody had any idea of _what_ could have made her this irritable. She wandered stiffly into the common room, and, after snapping at a small group of sleepy looking second years, had her first run-in with a male member of her year. It happened to be Ron, who was stumbling down the stairs from the boy's dorm. He walked right into her, nearly knocking her over, and earning himself an angry snarl. Startled, he scrambled back up the stairs, leaving Tammy prowling around the common room.

Harry looked up when Ron burst into the room, looking quite startled.

"Something wrong?" he asked. Ron nodded. "What?"

"Kit." Ron said shortly. "I ran into her in the common room and she nearly bit my head off!"

"Then why did you come looking for me?"

"Because she listens to you!"

"Ron, she was probably just annoyed that you walked into her. Go downstairs, apologize, and quit worrying." He waited a few minutes, and then looked pointedly at Ron. "You haven't left yet?" Ron shook his head.

"Nuh-uh."

"Why not?"

"Because it wasn't just me."

"What d'y- Hi Seamus."

"Don't _Hi Seamus _me!" Both Ron and Harry looked at Seamus is surprise. They couldn't tell if he was angry, scared, or a bit of both.

"Um…is something wrong?" Ron asked timidly.

"You _bet_ something's wrong!" Seamus rounded on Harry. "You get your butt down into the common room and make your crazy girlfriend calm down!" Harry turned very red, opening and shutting his mouth several times, unable to say anything. Finally, it was Ron who managed to say something.

"Since when is she his girlfriend?"

"Since we all saw them sleeping together right after school started!" Clearly, if Harry didn't step in soon, there was going to be a fight between the two.

"Calm down. _Both_ of you. Seamus, she's not my girlfriend. Ron, it's not something to get to mad about. I'll go see what I can do, but I'm not making any promises." Harry left the room and hurried down the stairs.

His arrival in the common room was greeted with thankful sighs, and a few cheers. Hermione stepped up to him.

"She's over there." She said, pointing at a secluded desk in a corner. "Under the desk. Good luck."

"Thanks." Harry was about to approach the desk when an owl flew in the window and fluttered underneath the desk, hooting. Then, there were a few moments of silence, then a deafening hoot, and the owl shot out from underneath the desk, with Tammy in hot pursuit.

"Bloody bird!" She screeched angrily, brandishing her wand at the creature, which was perched on the back of an armchair across the room. "Keep bringing me letters from those idiots and I'll use you for a feather-duster!" The owl gave an indignant hoot.

"I think she's lost it." Someone whispered. Tammy rounded on the crowd behind her.

"LOST IT!" she shrieked. "WHO SAYS I'VE LOST IT!"

"She didn't have it to begin with." Harry muttered, shouldering his way through a tightly packed cluster of second-years that were blocking his path. Hermione saw him. He gave her a thumbs-up and snuck around behind Tammy, who was still threatening the owl on the armchair. Several times, her wand came dangerously close to Harry's face, and he had to duck in order to avoid getting hit by it, and thus losing the element of surprise.

"GET OUT OF HERE!" Tammy yelled at the owl. "I DON'T CARE IF-HEY!" Harry pounced just as she was about to voice this latest threat, grabbing both of her arms and pinning them to her sides. On a second thought, he pulled her hands behind her back and caught her wrists in one of his hands. Hermione zipped over and took away Tammy's wand.

"She's all yours." She whispered, retreating to a safe distance, so that neither Harry nor Tammy could attempt to exact revenge.

"Gee, thanks." Harry grumbled. He clapped his free hand over Tammy's mouth just as she was about to continue her yelling. She glared at him, and struggled, but he had the advantages of both size and strength, and he won. "Listen. You've really got to calm down. I don't know what's going on, and I don't want to. Understand? OW!" he let go, cradling his hand to his chest, and glaring at Tammy.

"I understand." Tammy growled, licking her lips and making a face. "Yuck. You taste like owl."

"Hedwig was just in. Now shoo." Tammora went, leaving Harry to examine the two neat sets of imprints left by her teeth, punctuated by two spots of blood that marked her canines.

"Are you sure they're not a couple?" Seamus whispered to Ron. (They'd come down to watch Harry.)

"Yeah. But you couldn't tell by looking at them."


End file.
